The Lowdown: No. 17 Mid-America Christian University @ No. 23 St. Gregory's University
Time: Saturday, (Feb. 22) @ 5 p.m.
Location: Shawnee, Okla.
Live Stats
The Dish on the Evangels: The No. 17-ranked Mid-America Christian University Evangels are in the midst of a four-game losing streak after suffering a heartbreaking 75-74 loss Thursday night (Feb. 20) to John Brown University inside the Gaulke Activity Center. The Evangels led 74-71 in the closing seconds before Gilbert Gyamfi converted a four-point play with two seconds left to send JBU to the win.
The Evangels are 14-9 overall and are now tied for third place in the Sooner Athletic Conference with St. Gregory's University at 10-7 in the league, one full game behind Oklahoma City University.
Semar Farris is leading the Evangels in both scoring (19.7 ppg), assists (117) and steals (71).
Angelo Lewis is second in scoring at 16.2 ppg and has a team-high 6.0 rebounds a game. Jarius Wilson (13.8 ppg) and Reggie Davis (11.9 ppg) are also scoring in double-figures for MACU.
The Dish on the Cavaliers: The No. 23-ranked St. Gregory's University Cavaliers snapped a brief two-game losing skid with an 87-78 win at Oklahoma Baptist University Thursday night (Feb. 20) to move to 19-7 overall and 10-7 in the SAC.
Marty Wilkerson is pacing the Cavaliers with 21.0 points along with a team-high 124 assists. Tilford Thornton is scoring 17.2 ppg and Josiah Campbell has a team-best 10.5 rebounds per game for SGU.
The Series: The Evangels have had their way with the Cavaliers since joining the NAIA in 2007. MACU has won 12 of the 13 meetings with SGU after sweeping the season series last year. MACU defeated the Cavaliers 89-78 at home in the first matchup this season back on Jan. 25.
National Spotlight: For the first time in school history, the NAIA national spotlight will be on Mid-America Christian University Men's Basketball, as Saturday's matchup at No. 23 St. Gregory's University has been chosen as the NAIA Game of the Week. In addition to macuathletics.com and the MACU social media outlets, check out naia.org and the NAIA social media channels for complete coverage.
The Coaches:
Willie Holley is in his 41st season as head coach at Mid-America Christian University and his 783 career victories rank first in school history and second all-time in the NAIA.
Holley helped the Evangels become competitive in a short period of time in the Sooner Athletic Conference and broke through last season. Holley guided the Evangels to their highest-ever finish of third in the SAC with a 9-7 league record. MACU made their first appearance in the NAIA Top 25 in school history, coming in as high as tied for 23rd. The Evangels went on to capture their 20th NCCAA Central Regional Championship and finished fifth at the NCCAA National Tournament.
The 2012-13 season also featured guard Charlie Shorter, who was named SAC Player of the Year, NCCAA National Player of the Year and was a first-team NAIA All-America selection. It's the third straight season Holley has coached an NAIA All-American, as Shorter and Brandon Williams were Honorable-Mention selections in 2011-12 and 2010-11, respectively.
Holley's coaching style is to establish in his players a "no quit" attitude. This style led to an improbable NCCAA National Championship in 2007. The title was the fourth of Holley's illustrious career as he previously won the championship in 1998, 2003, and 2004. This year the plan is to take that same attitude and improve on last season's effort.
During his time at Mid-America, Holley has become a fixture in the athletic program, as he served as Athletic Director from 1973-2012. In 1997, Holley was inducted into the NCCAA Hall of Fame, and he has been named the NCCAA Division II Coach of the Year four times - 1985, 1995, 2000 and 2004. Holley has also coached 17 All- Americans and won numerous conference and regional championships.
Holley earned his bachelor's degree in business administration from University of Louisiana - Monroe in 1970. He and his wife, Janet, have three daughters: Angela, Jessica and Stacey.
John Martin is in his sixth season at the helm of the St. Gregory's University Cavaliers. Before coming to SGU, Martin was the head coach of Moore HS for three years and at John Marshall HS in OKC for two seasons. Martin guided John Marshall to a state championship in 2003.
Up Next: The Evangels will host Oklahoma City University for Senior Night next Thursday night (Feb. 27) at 8 p.m. inside the Gaulke Activity Center. The matchup appears to have huge postseason implications with OCU currently in second place in the Sooner Athletic Conference, one game ahead of the Evangels.
